In pre-market trading, the shares of Cardinal Health (CAH) were last down over 4.3% to $65.07. At that price next support is at $63.92. Resistance is at $66.15. As previously reported, the WSJ said that Amazon.com (AMZN) is looking to expand its medical supplies business, which is negatively impacting the stocks of Owens & Minor (OMI), McKesson (MCK), and Cardinal Health (CAH).

Macquarie analyst Benjamin Schachter says Amazon's (AMZN) Twitch aggregate viewership continues to rise, and Twitch is now bigger than CNN (TWX). While eSports as a whole is becoming a more concrete opportunity, the analyst notes that which games and genres will be the most popular/viewed eSports over time is unclear. Schachter also highlights that the Overwatch League launched to peak views of over 408K and over 10M unique viewers across the opening week, and that display ads on Amazon properties like Twitch are meaningful contributors to Other revenue, which grew 58% to $4.65B in 2017. He reiterates an Outperform rating and $1,750 price target on Amazon's shares.

Commenting on The Wall Street Journal report saying Walgreens (WBA) has approached AmerisourceBergen (ABC) in a takeover attempt and the companies remain early in their discussions, Wells Fargo analyst Peter Costa tells investors he believes the acquisition makes sense given the already existing long-term partnership and limited ability to merge laterally. Further, the analyst believes a potential combination could help lower costs and wring out synergies in the U.S. drug distribution channel, and better position Walgreens in the face of increasing competitive threat from a possible Amazon (AMZN) entry. However, a merger might risk alienating AmerisourceBergen's retail pharmacy customers that compete with Walgreens' pharmacies, he contends.

02/13/18

DADA

02/13/18NO CHANGETarget $1800DADABuy

Amazon.com investors should take advantage of pullback, says DA Davidson

DA Davidson analyst Tom Forte keeps his Buy rating and $1,800 on Amazon.com but says that investors should take advantage of the latest pullback to add to their positions. In addition to valuation, Forte cites the press reports on the latest hiring of Jennifer Salke as the new head of Amazon Studios, thereby filling "an important void after a potential period of disruption" and bringing one of its most significant areas of investment - proprietary content - back on track. The analyst notes that among Salke's prior accomplishments as the President of NBC Entertainment were hit shows such as "This Is Us", "Glee", "Modern Family", and "Prison Break".

02/12/18

BERN

02/12/18NO CHANGEBERN

'Ship with Amazon' gives options to merchants not storing with company, says Bernstein

Bernstein analyst David Vernon believes Amazon (AMZN) is trying to grow Fulfillment by Amazon volume without growing the FBA physical footprint. The "Ship with Amazon" feature seems like an attempt to make Amazon transportation options available to a select list of merchants who do not wish to pay Amazon for the cost of storing their inventory the fulfillment centers, he contends. The analyst believes UPS (UPS) and FedEx (FDX) need to enforce commercial discipline and communicate better.

CAHCardinal Health

$68.03

1.31 (1.96%)

01/04/18

EVER

01/04/18INITIATIONTarget $67EVERIn Line

Cardinal Health initiated with an In Line at Evercore ISI

Evercore ISI started Cardinal Health with an In Line rating and $67 price target.

Leerink analyst David Larsen says that his recent research around Amazon's (AMZN) licensing activity has shown that the company's entry into healthcare markets is, at least for now, focused on medical supplies and devices rather than pharmaceuticals. The analyst believes Owens & Minor (OMI), Cardinal Health (CAH) and Henry Schein (HSIC) are most exposed but that it will take several years for Amazon Business to scale up manufacturer supply relationships to take significant share. Although the top and bottom line impact may be small over the next year or two, Larsen remains cautious on the group as multiples continue to reflect the Amazon threat as well as pricing and volume headwinds.

12/04/17

DBAB

12/04/17INITIATIONTarget $64DBABHold

Cardinal Health initiated with a Hold at Deutsche Bank

Deutsche Bank analyst Glen Santangelo started Cardinal Health with a Hold rating and $64 price target. The analyst believes uncertainty around drug pricing and the potential for integration risk with Cordis and the Patient Recovery acquisitions warrant a "more prudent approach" to the shares.

11/30/17

JEFF

11/30/17NO CHANGEJEFF

Jefferies sees drugstore sentiment improving with no Amazon news

Investors were anticipating an announcement from Amazon.com (AMZN) regarding a pharmacy strategy around Thanksgiving due to recent media reports and the resulting sell-side speculation, Jefferies analyst Brian Tanquilut tells investors in a research note. With no Amazon pharmacy entry announced one week removed from the holiday, the analyst believes investor sentiment over the drug supply chain may gradually improve, at least in the near-term. He notes that the price-to-earnings multiples of Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) and CVS Health (CVS) have already declined amid speculation of an Amazon entry. Tanquilut acknowledges, however, that the Amazon overhang will not completely go away. The analyst has Buy ratings on UnitedHealth (UNH) and Walgreens, and Hold ratings on AmerisourceBergen (ABC), Cardinal Health (CAH), CVS and McKesson (MCK).

Snap CEO Evan Spiegel sold about 2.7M shares of stock last week, worth over $50M, which is his first personal stock sale since the company went public, according to Recode. The sale was a small amount of the executive's over holdings, a little more than 1%, the report added. Reference Link

Galapagos NV (GLPG) and MorphoSys (MPSYY) announced the presentation of more detailed results of the Phase 1 study with the investigational IL-17C antibody MOR106 in atopic dermatitis patients at the American Academy of Dermatology Annual Meeting 2018. Initial study data were reported in September 2017. In the study, MOR106 showed first signs of activity and durable responses and was generally well tolerated in AD patients. In the multiple ascending doses part, 25 patients received four infusions once weekly of either MOR106 or placebo in a 3:1 ratio. Patients were followed for 10 weeks after the end of the treatment period. In the MAD part in AD patients reported at AAD 2018, all adverse drug reactions observed were mild-to-moderate and transient in nature. No serious adverse events and no infusion-related reactions were recorded. MOR106 exhibited a favorable pharmacokinetics profile with dose-dependent exposure. At the highest dose level of MOR106, in 83% of patients an improvement of at least 50% in signs and extent of AD, as measured by EASI-50, was recorded at week 4. The onset of activity occurred within two to four weeks, depending on the dose administered. MOR106 was generated using MorphoSys' Ylanthia antibody platform and is based on a target discovered by Galapagos. IL-17C is a cytokine which has been related to dermal inflammation and has been shown to be distinct from other members of the IL-17 cytokine family. MOR106 is the first publically known human monoclonal antibody against IL-17C in clinical development worldwide. MOR106 is an investigational drug and its safety and efficacy are yet to be established. It is expected that Phase 2 development with MOR106 will be initiated in the first half of 2018.

The U.S. Navy awarded Lockheed Martin a $15M contract to mature its Freedom-variant Frigate design as a part of the Navy's FFG(X) competition. Built to U.S. Navy shipbuilding standards, Lockheed Martin's Frigate offering was designed from the keel up to be adaptable, scalable and responsive to the fleet's needs. The Lockheed Martin and Fincantieri Marinette Marine team is currently in full-rate production of the Freedom-variant of the LCS, and has delivered five ships to the U.S. Navy to date. There are eight ships in various stages of construction at Fincantieri Marinette Marine, with one more in long-lead production.

In a follow-up story, Barron's says that Under Armour reported fourth quarter revenue that beat Wall Street's estimate, but is difficult to tell whether the revenue upside represents a turning point for the business. Bulls and bears both found something to support their arguments, as revenue increased but gross margin declined while inventories swelled and store count rose 22%, the report notes. Reference Link

Hovnanian Enterprises offers an interesting speculative bet, because more than a decade's worth of problems are reflected in the price, Brett Arends writes in this week's edition of Barron's. A successful resolution of its legal issues, a corporate turnaround, a takeover, or a continued recovery in the U.S. real estate market are all potential catalysts, he adds. Reference Link

It is time for investors to think about how and when bull markets end, Jack Hough writes in this week's edition of Barron's. Groups to favor now include financials, which benefit from rising interest rates, and industrials, he notes, adding that technology still looks attractive. Alphabet (GOOG; GOOGL), Lam Research (LRCX), Citigroup (C), and Cummins (CMI) are all well positioned for the later stages of a long market rally, Hough contends. Reference Link

General Electric lost $6B in 2017 after a series of charges and impairments, cut its dividend by 50%, and its accounting is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, but lately it has been attracting fresh attention from value-oriented investors, Andrew Bary writes in this week's edition of Barron's. Nonetheless, the stock is not a bargain and could drop another 10% or more, he contends.Reference Link

Catch up on the top industries and stocks that were impacted, or were predicted to be impacted, by the comments, actions and policies of President Trump and his administration with this weekly recap compiled by The Fly: 1. INFRASTRUCTURE: On Monday, the Trump administration unveiled its infrastructure plan. The White House said its plan will create $1.5T for repairing and upgrading the country's infrastructure, but only $200B of that will come from direct federal spending. The rest should come from state and local governments, which are expected to match any federal allocation by at least a four-to-one ratio. About $100B of the new federal money would be parceled out as incentives to local government entities, an additional $20B would go toward "projects of national significance," and another $50B is earmarked for rural block grants. The rest of the money would support other infrastructure-related undertakings, including existing loan programs. The Trump administration also said it wants to shorten the time and expense of getting federal permits by consolidating the reviews conducted by different agencies into one federal decision. Publicly traded companies that could benefit from spending on infrastructure include Aecom (ACM), CB&I (CBI), Caterpillar (CAT), Eagle Materials (EXP), Fluor (FLR), Granite Construction (GVA), Jacobs Engineering (JEC), Martin Marietta (MLM), Quanta Services (PWR), U.S. Concrete (USCR) and Vulcan Materials (VMC). 2. GAS TAX: According to multiple media reports on Wednesday, President Donald Trump is said to be open to raising the federal tax on gasoline and diesel by 25c to pay for the White House's infrastructure plan. The current taxes are 18.4c per gallon for gasoline and 24.4c for diesel, and have not been raised in nearly 25 years. 3. TAX REFORM, LESS REGULATION: Speaking at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference on Thursday, Visa (V) CEO Alfred Kelly said that the new tax reform and less regulation will have a "great" impact on the economy, and noted that the Trump administration is trying to drive down "shackles" of regulations for financial services companies. President Trump's policies may not be a big deal "directly" for the company, but are a big deal "indirectly," he added. 4. STEEL, ALUMINUM 232 FINDINGS: Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross released reports on the Department of Commerce's investigations into the impact on national security from imports of steel mill products and from imports of wrought and unwrought aluminum. The Department of Commerce found that the quantities and circumstances of steel and aluminum imports "threaten to impair the national security," as defined by Section 232. Secretary Ross recommended remedies to address the problem of steel imports and for dealing with the excessive imports of aluminum, noting that the President is required to make a decision on the recommendations by April. Publicly traded companies in the aluminum space include Alcoa (AA), Arconic (ARNC), and Century Aluminum (CENX). Publicly traded companies in the steel space include U.S. Steel (X), Steel Dynamics (STLD), AK Steel (AKS), Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF), Nucor (NUE), ArcelorMittal (MT), and Timken (TKR). 5. RUSSIAN INDICTMENTS: Special counsel Robert Mueller on Friday charged 13 Russian nationals and three Russian companies for allegedly carrying out "information warfare against the United States," and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein indicted the Russian conspirators on charges related to interference with the 2016 presidential election. Rosenstein noted there is no allegation in the indictment that any American had any knowledge of the alleged conspiracy. "Week in Review" is The Fly's weekly recap of its recurring series of "Trump Effect" exclusive stories.

Middleby announced the acquisition of Hinds-Bock Corporation. The company is a leading manufacturer of solutions for filling and depositing bakery and food product, an integral part of the industrial baking and food processing line. The company is based in Bothell, Washington and has approximately $15M in annual revenues. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

In a regulatory filing, 683 Capital disclosed a 21.8% stake in Onconova, adding that it bought the shares of the company based on the belief that such securities, when purchased, were undervalued and represented an attractive investment opportunity.

General Dynamics Land Systems, Sterling Heights, Michigan, has been awarded a $148,964,414 modification to contract W56HZV-16-D-0060 to provide parts supply support for the entire Stryker program. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Feb. 28, 2019. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Michigan, is the contracting activity.

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Pascagoula, Miss., is being awarded a $1,430,821,350 fixed-price-incentive modification to a previously awarded contract for the procurement of the detail design and construction of landing platform dock 29. Work is expected to be completed by July 2023. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity.

Certain potential buyers of Tesla's (TSLA) long-delayed Model 3 vehicle are concerned that they will miss out on large federal tax breaks and are seeking alternatives, including GM's (GM) Chevrolet Bolt, Reuters reports, citing postings by potential Tesla buyers on websites and interviews with GM dealers. A week ago, Tesla informed some holders of Model 3 reservations that they would not receive their cars until 2019, the report notes. GM dealers in California say that strong demand for Chevy Bolts is driven partially by frustrated Tesla buyers who fear losing a $7,500 electric vehicle tax credit if they wait for the Model 3, the report says. Reference Link